Catch up with news, commentary & analysis from and about the Pacific island region:

Australia is working hard to normalise relations with Fiji now that the election is over, including the restoration of military ties. But there is still no word as to when the Bainimarama Government will welcome Australia's High Commissioner.

The government of Nauru is threatening to shut down services, having run out of cash (this despite the regional processing centre generating a 10% uptick in GDP for 2014). Newly introduced legislation means that non-citizens who work on Nauru or supply services will be required to pay tax within the jurisdiction.

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community has worked with the Ministry of Education in Vanuatu to produce the 2013 annual statistical digest [pdf].

In the Cook Islands, a High Court decision has resulted in the ruling party losing its one-seat majority.

The Melanesian Spearhead Group is providing assistance to Micronesian states in establishing the Micronesian Trade Center.

At the UN, Pacific indigenous peoples called for a moratorium on seabed mining until appropriate national regulatory frameworks are in place. Vanuatu has since released a draft policy on deep sea minerals [pdf].

Benny Wenda is the charismatic face of the fight for the independence of West Papua. Learn more about him, his life in exile and his activism from this documentary: